A few finds.

I'm afraid this post is going to be another mix-up! I just wanted to show you a few of my most recent finds and fill you in on some recent events!

As I mentioned in my previous post, I visited Goodstock on Manchester's Oxford Road last Monday to have a look around. Along with the gorgeous, brand new H&M skirt I pictured on Instagram, I also picked up this brand new, tagged dress. I love anything vaguely animal print, particularly of the leopard print variety. This dress is so easy to wear and it led to a rather attractive consultant at the hospital telling me I looked good so it can't be bad!

Give Goodstock a follow on Instagram and Twitter @goodstockshop for their latest bargains! 

I'm attending a blogger event with them next Thursday so pictures to follow - hopefully I might see a few of you there!

So as I mentioned, last Friday I was admitted to Manchester Royal Infirmary completely unexpectedly! I went to a walk in centre in Manchester about 3pm and by 6pm, I was in resuscitation in A&E, hooked up to an ECG machine. The experience could've been absolutely terrifying if it wasn't for the excellent staff at the hospital and the help I received from my friends. I just wanted to also say a massive thanks to everyone who wished me well on social media - it really kept my spirits up! I did spend most of my time on the ward flicking through Instagram jealously looking at the bargains you'd all picked up over the weekend! 

Suffering withdrawal from a weekend away from the shops and able to breathe again, I stopped in Oxfam on Oldham Street on the way home where I picked up this incredible green skirt from ASOS. I haven't yet decided how to wear this as it's quite a dramatic style and a long length on my little legs but I'm happy to just gaze at its beauty for a couple more days! Any suggestions welcome, as always!

I also purchased three pieces of jewellery earlier this week from the RSPCA shop in Manchester's Northern Quarter. Any Manchester people need to visit this gem - it's a shame it's so hidden away! You can find it on Oak Street.

Each of these pieces cost £1.99. The longer, larger chain is just from M&S but the ring is silver. The second necklace is unmarked but I just love the style of it. I've not taken it off since purchasing, even if I do have to keep putting it back together as the jewel keeps falling off!

I also reached the 1000 followers mark on Instagram this week which I'm completely in shock about! I never realised the blog and associated pages would pick up in popularity when I started writing again in January. It really was an excellent decision as I've met some great people and been involved in some lovely events. More to follow soon.

And then finally today I picked up this Topshop faux leather skirt from Oxfam in Sale on my way to work. The amount of skirts of this style and material that I own is becoming out of control. I could do with realising that I can't wear them all at once!

It will come as no shock that my most recent investment has actually been a new clothing rail...

Char x

Goodstock.

Goodstock is relatively new to the Manchester charity shop scene. Raising money for youth charity vInspired, the shop can be found in a prime location on Oxford Road - an excellent site with huge front display windows, invitingly dressed to entice in passers by. The shop first caught my eye from the top deck of the bus and I kept telling myself I needed to go and have a look so when I received an email from them asking me to pop in, I jumped at the chance!

The charity have created an interesting concept. The ground floor is full of second hand high street label bargains such as these never worn Dorothy Perkins trousers or this Topshop skirt.

I couldn't possibly leave without picking up this H&M skirt which I believe is still in stores at full price!

Up the stairs is a wonderful vintage section, made up of both personally donated items and some clothing donated in bulk from vintage lines such as Blue Rinse. It's a great space for any vintage lover!

I particularly loved these two floral dresses!

The shop was really immaculately presented and I will be sure to return soon!

You can find Goodstock at:
6a Oxford Road
Manchester
M1 5QA

They're open for your viewing and buying pleasure from 10am-6pm Monday-Saturday and if you would like to get in contact with them, you can on 0161 236 3258 or email to Goodstock@vinspired.com.

If you've purchased from Goodstock already or pop in soon, let me know what you think!

Char x

Why I'd never return to charity retail management.

As you know, I love charity shops. In fact, the majority of my life outside of work is spent looking in them, travelling to and from them or writing about them on here. You’d think that being surrounded by second hand clothes, having first dibs on them and getting a discount would be my ideal job, right? Wrong.

I started working for a UK wide charity as a part time Assistant Manager while I was completing a course at Edge Hill University. I worked two days a week – one day to cover the manager’s day off and one day supporting her. At first, I loved it. The shop I worked in had long had plans to set up a vintage clothing section and I was put it charge of that.

When I dropped out of my university course, the charity asked me to work full time as a travelling manager, doing cover in all the northwest shops. This meant I’d often be up at 6am and getting home after 8pm. I’d also be in up to five different shops per week, which meant I never really settled into a team or got to know any volunteers well enough to really build a relationship with them.

Then came a fall out with the Manager at my base shop which escalated to Area Manager level and could only be resolved by my Area Manager driving over to see me – the outcome of which was that my contract had to be changed to another base shop. I began to commute from Preston to Oldham every day, which was both tiring and very expensive. I LOVED the Oldham shop and made some great friends but the commute and the cost wasn’t sustainable so I started to look for management jobs with other charities.

After seven months working for my first charity, I secured a job with a smaller charity with only a handful of shops in the northwest. My new role involved setting up a shop from scratch in new premises. At first, I loved it but things began to go downhill quickly.

Financial targets in charity shops can be ridiculous. What Area Managers tend to forget is that you simply cannot control the quality and volume of stock that comes through the door. There’s also a limit to what people will pay for second hand goods. They also tend to forget that volunteers have no contract and if they don’t want to turn up for work, that’s completely up to them. There’s no way you can operate a till, maintain displays, take donations, complete daily banking and sort stock single handedly but sometimes, that’s what it comes down to.

My Area Manager was a real nasty piece of work. I asked her time and time again for support in dealing with volunteer issues, which included suicide threats and domestic violence cases.  

I became so stressed and unhappy. I lost huge chunks of hair and for months after leaving I would wear a hat or a scarf whenever I went outside in addition to undergoing many rounds of blood tests only to discover the cause was not physical. Even now, nearly two years on, my hair has never recovered. The hangover in the decline of my mental health took well over a year to dissipate and only now do I feel I'm mostly back to who I was before. The job ruined my relationships with my family, my friends and played a huge part in the end of my relationship.

It’s a really hard job and I give my utmost respect to those people who do it. I mentioned in a blog that I had only recently started shopping with the first charity I worked for but I can safely say that I will never give another penny to the second which is a terrible shame because they raise money for a good cause but I don’t want to think my money may go to paying the wages of the people who were responsible for making me so ill.

I find it incredible that a charity can treat their staff so poorly when their whole purpose is to improve the lives of people.

Char x

Let's catch up!

Firstly, apologies for the lack of posts recently! There have been a couple of big changes over the past week or two which I feel I'm still running to catch up with. Apologies if this post is completely non-sensical, I'm just going to put a few things that have happened together...

Event 1:
Last Friday I took an enormous bag of clothes to a charity shop. When I say enormous, I mean it...it was nearly as big as me! I'm not going to mention which shop it was because despite what happened, I think the charity do a good job and I don't want my opinion of one occasion to be in any way detrimental to them. So, I struggled on foot with this huge bag, finally arriving at the shop with an exacerbated dodgy back. I'm left standing in a queue for nearly fifteen minutes, during which time at least five staff members walked past me and offered no help. Once I got to the front of the queue, I place the bag on the counter and say I wish to donate the items. Then, nothing. The bag is whisked away and the gentlemen beckons to the lady behind me.
Right, am I being unreasonable in thinking that the lack of thank you is quite a big deal? I had spent a good hour at home going through my wardrobe, choosing good quality items that I thought the shop would get some good money for. I'd then chosen this particular charity and this particular shop to donate it to and there's not so much as a nod of recognition?! I'm not expecting that they should be overcome with gratitude (I know people donate frequently) but I do think for an industry running solely on donations, they really need to find some manners.

Event 2:
I spent Sunday and Monday in London with my friend David who has recently moved there to do some training for a new job. On Monday when he went to work, I took the tube to Holloway which is an area I've been to before due to the company I work for having their head office just down the road. I knew there were at least a few charity shops there. I always thought charity shops in London would be really expensive but I was pleasantly surprised - I picked up four items for £16.

Event 3:
Is it possible to fall in love with a bag? I believe I am in love with a bag. This bag:

I picked this up today in Oxfam in Withington for £3.99. I love everything about it - the size, the colour, the detailing, the fact it has never been used...I could go on. I really think it's perfect.

I also just want to draw your attention to a new account I've started following on Instagram - patsyspennies which showcases purchases two sisters have made at boot fairs and in charity shops. It was only set up a few days ago but I can tell it'll be great! There is also an accompanying blog. I think you'll like it!

Char x

Best of three.

This is a picture of the three purchases I made before I got to work this morning. Before I even got to work. I feel as if this blog might be feeding my existing addiction to charity shops to a dangerous level.

The top item is this bold red dress, originally from Boohoo. It cost £2.99 from The Salvation Army. It is unusually bright for me and I anticipate I will have to dampen it down a little with lots of black! The Salvation Army shop in Sale is SUCH a weird one! Along with its odd 3pm closing time, all the clothing has been forced to the side by furniture in a tiny space. I could hardly get to this dress as one of the volunteers was brandishing a hammer, fixing a table leg! Since my beloved Age UK shut down, I've been taking some of my donations to the shop as it's the smallest charity left in Sale and we all know how I love to back the underdogs!

I also picked up this zig-zag print skirt from Scope for £3.25. Scope in Sale is fast becoming a favourite of mine! They put out new stock daily and I never see bad quality items or unreasonable prices. I'm really enjoying this style of skirt at the moment - its not dissimilar from my new leopard print one!

My final purchase was these trousers from the British Heart Foundation for £3.99. I'm not sure what genre of trousers these are supposed to be as the waist and drawstrings elude to something active but I don't think I'll be wearing them for that purpose - shopping is about as active as I get at the moment!

What do you think of my buys?

Char x

Charity shop sweep.

I'm unfortunate enough to work most Saturdays but after finishing a little early yesterday, I though I'd go for a quick walk in Chorlton. I only intended to go to the Age UK Silver Service shop which is my favourite there. I never get chance to go as it is one of the few shops in Chorlton which doesn't open on a Sunday. I think the shop is great as it strikes a perfect balance between organised and jumble sale! There's normally some unusual pieces of jewellery along with fairly priced, good quality clothing and a stack of bargain books - usually 5 for £1! In addition to that, the staff there are wonderful - the lady who works on the till is almost a friend of mine now!

My first pick was these skinny black patterned trousers for £3. In my experience, trousers aren't big sellers in charity shops and managers seem to be offering them quite cheaply in most shops I go in.

I also picked up this plain dark green cardigan for £1.60. It is actually far better quality than it appears in this photograph! Light and a nice fabric - perfect for when the weather gets a little warmer.

I also picked up this bracelet for £3. Maybe a little on the expensive side but I instantly fell in love with it!

Next, I went into Sue Ryder which is a fairly new addition to Chorlton high street. It's a huge shop with furniture and clothing for sale. There's also a 'vintage' section at the back which I have to say, I'm not a fan of! It's mostly made up of vintage-style high street items which have had their prices unfairly bumped up!

I overheard the manager saying the shop had had its most successful week ever financially so they must be doing something right!  

The skirt above is originally from River Island and cost £3.50.

I also picked up this pale pink (and very creased) top which was £5 - far more expensive than I would usually pay for a such a simple item but it's from Whistles and is such excellent quality.

My final Sue Ryder purchase was this Topshop cardigan from the outside pound rail! 

I also bought this £1 Oasis dress from the RSPCA shop. (Why is everything so creased?)

Then, I went BACK into Age UK...I'd seen this item on my first visit and really couldn't decide on it but after a little walk around and a think, I decided I would be a little sad if I went home without it and if I didn't like it, I could just donate it back!

I'm not sure how to describe this...it's like a long blazer? I've tried it on now and I absolutely adore it! It nips in nicely at the back and fits me perfectly. I was a bit worried it might look too 80s with the shoulder pads but it's just perfect for £6.50...I'm so glad I went back for it!

I also picked up this light blue Topshop dress for £5.95 which'll be nice for a night out. 

My final purchase was this small stack of silver-coloured rings for £2. Definitely overpriced but simple enough to wear every day.

I made all of these purchases inside an hour which even for me is quite an achievement!

Has anyone made any Bank Holiday charity shop purchases this weekend?

Char x